The presentation is as if these two are inseparable – which we know is not the case since the Bastion of Democracy in our world is known for her Big Brother-esque behaviours these days. Because duh, that’s totally what socialism is all about! In The Giver, there is Sameness, and the only way for order to be maintained is to eliminate difference and therefore also eliminate colour and pain and pleasure. So my biggest issue is that Lowry presents us with a false dichotomy. I REALLY LIKED THIS STORY! I just didn’t like… some other stuff. The difference is that Animal Farm, to my mind, illustrated the progression of history, whereas The Giver tried to give history qualities it never had.
The thing is, the parallels are almost TOO easy to pick up on (much like in Animal Farm). This isn’t really surprising because she was born in the 1930s so war and the Cold War were her childhood milieu. Lowry makes it pretty clear that she equates Sameness with socialism/communism, and so she draws the parallel of evil. I realise that there is bias and propaganda in most anything we see or read or hear, but The Giver is BLATANT. I thought Lowry’s writing was lovely and descriptive and gripping. But – but… history is one of my favorite things!!Īs a dystopian novel (now remember, this is a Middle Grade book published in 1993) it was pretty wonderful. Which it never would in real life because of power-hungry people and stuff.Īnd then, in the back of my mind, this tiny voice asked, “I wonder how Lowry is going to ruin this for us?”Īnd BAM! No colour. It’s like the whole idealistic Marxism thing EXCEPT IT ACTUALLY WORKS. Everybody has access to the same things? Fantastic. Everybody gets the job that suits them best? Awesome. CAN I LIVE THERE? GET ME A REAL-ESTATE AGENT, STAT!īecause seriously. Okay, maybe once before, in Lord of the Flies, after that whole thing with the rock happened. On GoodReads I gave it a pretty high rating, BECAUSE THERE WAS NO “QUESTION-MARK” OPTION! I have never felt so conflicted about a book before. Guys, I had so many thoughts about it afterwards.
I had been putting it off for years but it is such a quick and easy read that I could read it in an afternoon. South African schools don’t really study The Giver by Lois Lowry as prescribed reading, so I finally read it last weekend.
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